Winner-Take-All District Tourney Matchup
These district tourney games are for sure not disappointing with thrillers everywhere you look across the state. I can make the argument that the game we’re going to address first is the cream of the crop between two evenly matched…
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Continue ReadingThese district tourney games are for sure not disappointing with thrillers everywhere you look across the state. I can make the argument that the game we’re going to address first is the cream of the crop between two evenly matched squads where the game looms in the balance every time they have matched up. Let’s take a look at some of the matchups.
Marsh Valley edges out Snake River for Winner-take-All Matchup
The Marsh Valley Eagles wrapped up a 46-43 overtime win over Snake River in the 3A District 5 tournament on Monday, stretching their lead in the season series to 3-1 over their rival. Those four games have been decided by a total of 10 points. It seems to be a lock for the game to be a thriller when these two teams matchup.
Monday night’s affair was more defensive dominant which should be expected when they’ve played each other now four times going on for a fifth.
The three-point margin represented the largest of the four games, tying Marsh’s 62-59 and 57-54 wins from the regular season. The other game, a 58-57 Snake River win last week in double overtime, was what put Marsh Valley in its predicament Monday, needing to win to force a rematch for the district championship.
Marsh Valley trailed most of the game in last week’s loss as well, going down 11 points in the fourth quarter before storming back to force OT. The team took it upon themselves to not have the tourney end this way and they were dominant the rest of the way, reaching another gear.
The teams will play again at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Marsh Valley. The winner wins the district, while the loser will have to play two play-in games to make the state tournament. This is what the kids want, a winner-take-all with everything on the line. This is what you dream about.
Grace dominates Challis
Grace saw off Challis to keep its season alive and advance to a Wednesday matchup with Butte County in the 1A DI District 5-6 tournament.
Grace came out with a vengeance and made sure the game was never in doubt with an absolute blowout victory winning 71-37. The team played with a purpose knowing their season was on the line and never looked back leading from the start.
Payson Andersen scored 19 points to lead the Grizzlies, who also got 14 points from Gage Stoddard Gage Stoddard 5'11" | PG Grace | 2021 State ID and 13 from Trey Draper.
Grace will have to beat Butte County twice, starting with Wednesday’s game at Butte County, to win the district title.